As industrial markets move towards the promised Internet of Things (IoT), Rockwell Automation and Cisco have announced new additions to their Converged Plantwide Ethernet (CpwE) architectures.
These changes will help operations technology (OT) and information technology (IT) professionals address changing security practices, giving them design guidance to help build a more secure network.
The Industrial IoT is elevating the need for flexible, secure connectivity between things, machines, workflows, databases and people, enabling new models of policy-based plant-floor access.
Through these new connections, machine data on the plant floor can be analysed and applied for better supply chain workflows.
A securely connected environment also enables organisations to mitigate risk with policy compliance, and protect intellectual property with secure sharing between global stakeholders.
The new architectures are focused on helping OT and IT professionals utilise security policies and procedures by forming multiple layers of defense.
“The key to industrial network security is in how you design and implement your infrastructure and holistically address security for internal and external threats,” said Lee Lane, business director, Rockwell Automation.
“The new guidance considers security factors for the industrial zone of the CPwE architectures, leveraging the combined experience of Rockwell Automation and Cisco.”
Rockwell Automation and Cisco have created resources to help manufacturers deploy security solutions. Each new guide is accompanied by a white paper with key design principles summarised.
Cisco's senior director Bryan Tantzen said security needed to be more than an afterthought in today’s plant environment.
“As we connect more devices and create more efficient ways of operating, we also create certain vulnerabilities,” he said.
“Cisco and Rockwell Automation have been teaming for nearly a decade on joint solutions, serving as the standards-based resource for security in industrial environments. These new architectures and guides build on our collaboration by helping organisations recognise and address today’s security concerns.”
The Industrial IoT is elevating the need for flexible, secure connectivity between things, machines, workflows, databases and people, enabling new models of policy-based plant-floor access.
